Various apparatus and techniques are known for secure transmission of data. A news release dated Mar. 10, 1992 of SynOptics Communications, Inc. describes a technology which provides data privacy and control for Ethernet local area networks. The technology, as described in the news release, does not provide encryption/decryption but rather only provides access control which may complement existing encryption and other security techniques. By using the technology proposed by SynOptics, only the intended destination receives a packet of data. Unauthorized stations attempting to access this data will see only meaningless data.
There are described in the Mar. 27, 1992 issue of Network Week, various patents of Synoptics and 3Com relating to security on Ethernet networks.